Silver brings political experience as UA chair

College junior Michael Silver is well prepared to take the reins of Penn's student government. College junior Michael Silver has come a long way since the fifth grade, when he lost the race for class president by a mere 15 votes. But the newly elected Undergraduate Assembly chairperson's early interest in politics went a lot farther at the time than just elementary school elections. "I remember in the fifth grade -- that was the year [Michael] Dukakis ran against [George] Bush and we had a little mock election [in school]," said Silver, 21. "I think I was only one of two people who voted for Dukakis. My Democratic roots were already there." And Silver's political interests aren't limited to climbing Penn's political ladder -- he is interested in possibly pursuing politics as a career. Last summer, he interned in Senator Frank Lautenberg's (D-N.J.) Washington, D.C., office and he is considering working either on Capitol Hill or as a lobbyist upon graduation. "[Working in] D.C. was fun," Silver said. "You see a lot of people who genuinely seem to care about what they do." The Woodcliff Lake, N.J., native's interests extend beyond the political. He is president of the Reformed Jewish Community at Penn and serves as a College of Arts and Sciences peer advisor, a sports anchor for UTV13 and a Kellogg Fellow with the Center for Community Partnerships. As part of his fellowship -- which was granted through his Environmental Studies class -- Silver and his classmates developed a program to educate fourth graders at Harrington Elementary School about lead poisoning. "For years at Penn I never thought about working on community service -- I mean, there are so many problems," Silver said. "But the kids are so great." Silver will write a thesis next year about New York's Catskill Mountains and their place in Jewish-American culture. Fittingly, the American History major has spent many of his summers in the Catskills, playing golf and chasing girls. "I'd try to find the one girl that was my age, as opposed to the 80-year-old grandma," Silver said. "That never worked out, which made for more stories for my friends. [I tried] to revive the myth of the Jewish boy meeting the Jewish girl, which my mom always encouraged me [to do]." Silver -- the third Phi Kappa Psi brother to serve as UA chairperson in as many years -- is very active in his fraternity. He has previously held the positions of historian and vice president and is currently the brotherhood's house manager. College senior and former UA Chairperson Noah Bilenker -- also a Phi Psi brother -- said the fraternity was recolonized by UA and class board members and tends to attract brothers with similar interests. "I mean, we'd like to take over the world [but it's not intentional]," said Bilenker, who was succeeded by Wharton junior and Phi Psi brother Bill Conway as the UA's top officer. "I didn't consciously start anything." Silver first ran for the UA at the end of his freshman year. Although he lost that election, he said he remained undeterred and ran again his sophomore year, winning a seat on the body and taking the reins of the West Philadelphia Committee. Silver said he ran for chairperson this year because people encouraged him to and, as as he is a junior, this was his "last shot" for a position bearing so much responsibility. In last week's election, he upset College sophomore and outgoing UA Vice Chairperson Michael Bassik to win the post. "I wasn't really surprised [by the election results] because I got such a good sense that? I was connecting deeply with everyone, especially the new people [on the UA]," Silver said. And working with the new executive board is one of the things he is most looking forward to during his tenure. "All five people [on the new executive board] are so well-qualified," Silver said. "When the dust settles, you're going to have the strongest executive committee and committee chairs in years." He added that the advisory role of committee chairpersons will be expanded next year when the UA will "think globally and pragmatically," according to Silver, citing issues to tackle such as tenure, alcohol and safety. The student government will also take stands on international issues and follow up on last year's initiatives, such as the SEPTA proposals, which called for more token machines and weekend passes for students.

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